Lost Kingdoms
Location Found along the north-western shore of the great inland sea that dominates central Varia, the Lost Kingdoms represent a roughly circular area of land with a diameter of approximately two-hundred miles. The vast kingdom, otherwise known as the misty wastes, is well known to be shrouded in a constant mist, making it difficult to map out exactly. To further complicate the exact location of this land, no diplomatic civilisation exists within easy exploration range of the kingdoms. The closest culture is that of the nomadic tribes who cross the Roaming Grasslands, and these tribesmen have been less than helpful in determining the exact details of the Lost Kingdoms. Exploration Most know of the legends and lore speaking of a great and powerful group of kingdoms in the central grasslands prior to the period of ruination, and indeed, it would seem impossible that such a place of immense size could have remained unpopulated and unvisited for such a long period of time- though this seems to be the case, for almost all attempts to explore the land have been utterly futile. The root of the problem with exploring the lost kingdoms may be in the actual journey required to reach the area. One must traverse great stretches of wild lands in order to reach the lost kingdoms. Three such routes exist from the western hemisphere of Varia: # Traversing the Northern Stretches and then descending the ice cliffs once East of the inland sea. # Taking passage through the Sellederre Empire to cross the Scattered Bay and then traversing north through the Longsea Trading Company and the Roaming Grasslands until reaching the Lost Kingdoms by land. # Traversing the wild-lands east of the Redland Empire, journeying through the Great Forest and then venturing by boat across the inland sea, past the Forbidden Island until reaching the shores of the Lost Kingdoms. Those who have managed to penetrate the mist and find their way to the Lost Kingdoms have been entirely unable to map the area, and have soon been turned around by the mists or swallowed by it. Those few who have managed to delve deeper than the surface speak of strange sights: dark knights looming out of the mist like frozen statues, and high walls and towers seeming to jump out, suddenly blocking the misty paths. Avaneri Expedition The last to have entered the misty wastes was an explorer named Gregalio Avaneri, a man born of Vensera, in the Redland Empire, in the year of 948PR. He journeyed via Eliant: the Oaken Bridge, across The Great Forest, hauling along the entire way a great ship. Many questioned why he simply did not employ an airship- for while they are absurdly rare and expensive to commission, the cost and effort of his transporting the ship over land was nothing short of monumental. His reasons for such was founded from a passage in “Leabhar Finscéal”- the holy book of lore treasured by the peoples of the wild-lands. The passage states: “Agus fiú ann draíoch na Déith nel aen chumhach tharr uicí chomh garr dos na glórnhar Manannán Mac Lir, a dhéanann chosaintt ar ann oileán ó gach a beadh agg teachet marn sheirbhís den sórt sen.” “And even the magic of the Gods has no power over waters so close to the glorious Manannán Mac Lir, who protects the island from all who would come as such servants.” Gregalio’s decision to take a mundane vessel likely saved his life, for upon reaching the inland sea and setting sail, he noticed odd shapes in the skies. On the sixth day of sailing, he took note of great pillars of stone rising above the fog and seeming to shift in patterns which would no doubt have destroyed any air vessel unaware of them. Even beneath the worst of the rocks, his ship was forced into the rocks, and damaged. Eventually, the water-logged ship washed up on the misty shores of the Lost Kingdom, where his party were forced to abandon ship and journey on foot through the mist. After almost six weeks, he emerged from that land somewhere in the Roaming Grasslands, half starved, and alone- the other ninety members of his party and crew having perished along the way. Some say that the journey drove Gregalio mad, and that he has ever since been a recluse in his home in Scarvati, Vensera. Others claim that he seemed of reasonable mind upon reaching home, and claim that when he was asked of the “regretful journey”, he answered only: “It was a remarkable journey and has given me much to think upon. I shall say that while I regret the loss of lives, I do not regret undertaking this journey- quite the opposite in fact!”